COMD 4701: Design Team

I was asked to teach a senior level class at City Tech in June, called Design Team. This class is a chance for our students to work as a larger whole for one client. As I told the class:

You are going to be a part of a crack team of designers, solving problems and finding ways to innovate while working your butts off. You will be graded on your ability to work as a teammate and as an individual thinker.

Our Client: DURA

This term, we had the honor of working on the design materials for the City Tech Solar Decathlon Project, known as DURA. I was so grateful to be able to work with the main designer for all of the materials to that point, Jennifer Jimenez, who graciously served as my art director and copilot for the entire class.

The Work

DURA had some key challenges with which we worked: they needed a revamped social media strategy, print materials or all stripes, and an overall narrative within which all of the components could work. I split my class into three teams: Uniforms, Signage, and Social Media. The team members chose their own leaders and were given guidelines on how to be good collaborators, all while I guided them through light interaction each class. I tried to stay out of the way unless there was a big issue–these students are all spectacular, so they needed to be respected as fellow designers, not treated as amateurs.

Related

Libby Clarke is an artist, designer, and educator living in Brooklyn, NY. She received her BFA in Printmaking from James Madison University and her MFA in 2D Design from Cranbrook Academy of Art. Professionally, Libby has worked as an interaction art director for over 12 years for such companies as Agency.com and Scholastic.com. Currently, she serves as an Assistant Professor at the New York College of Technology in Brooklyn, New York. As an artist, Libby has produced a series of multi-media conceptual products under the name Monstress Productions since 1996. She gives workshops and lectures across the United States on the intersection of art, activism, and technology, and her pieces are exhibited and collected internationally.